Synonyms of demeaning

demeaning 1 of 3

adjective

di-ˈmē-niŋ 

as in insulting

intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value

demanded an apology for his demeaning comments

Synonyms & Similar Words

• insulting
• slighting
• degrading
• derogatory
• malicious
• disparaging
• abusive
• pejorative
• uncomplimentary
• contemptuous
• deprecatory
• disdainful
• critical
• scornful
• depreciatory
• belittling
• derogative
• hateful
• venomous
• denigratory
• derisory
• depreciative
• libelous
• libellous
• cruel
• nasty
• detractive
• decrying
• denigrative
• defamatory
• slanderous
• unkind
• spiteful
• opprobrious
• scurrilous
• calumnious
• malignant
• malign
• malevolent
• virulent
• vilifying
• maligning
• mean
• catty
• slandering
• jealous
• despiteful
• caustic
• bitter
• denunciatory
• resentful
• envious
• acrimonious
• aspersing
• scathing
• rancorous
• acrid
• jaundiced
• denunciative

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• laudatory
• positive
• complimentary
• commendatory
• friendly
• respectful
• approving
• admiring
• adulatory
• appreciative
• kind
• laudative
• sympathetic
• applauding
• warm
• kindly
• kindhearted
• warmhearted
• unmalicious

demeaning

2 of 3

verb (1)

present participle of demean

1

as in degrading

to lower in character, dignity, or quality

it demeans the political process to demand that candidates make promises that everyone knows are unrealistic

Synonyms & Similar Words

• degrading
• humiliating
• corrupting
• debasing
• deteriorating
• subverting
• weakening
• damaging
• demoralizing
• poisoning
• debauching
• diluting
• perverting
• destroying
• depraving
• disgracing
• prostituting
• cheapening
• shaming
• ruining
• polluting
• lessening
• bastardizing
• marring
• profaning
• cankering
• abasing
• vitiating
• humbling
• warping
• contaminating
• tainting
• hurting
• harming
• impairing
• thinning
• dishonoring
• wrecking
• dirtying
• defiling
• spoiling
• tarnishing
• watering down
• descending
• staining
• befouling
• defacing
• begriming
• depreciating
• downgrading
• taking down
• flawing
• blemishing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• uplifting
• elevating
• improving
• honoring
• exalting
• ennobling
• amending
• enhancing
• enriching
• dignifying
• ameliorating
• perfecting
• cleaning
• clarifying
• bettering
• respecting
• restoring
• refining
• cleansing
• purifying
• meliorating

2

as in humiliating

to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes

his statement was not meant to demean the group's hard work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• humiliating
• discrediting
• degrading
• embarrassing
• insulting
• shaming
• humbling
• confusing
• debasing
• disgracing
• dishonoring
• cheapening
• rattling
• abasing
• criticizing
• chastening
• lowering
• taking down
• belittling
• disparaging
• fouling
• ridiculing
• diminishing
• disconcerting
• mortifying
• smirching
• minimizing
• sinking
• detracting
• discomfiting
• discounting
• condemning
• decrying
• maligning
• confounding
• slandering
• depreciating
• defaming
• discountenancing
• flustering
• libelling
• libeling
• castigating
• affronting
• defiling
• denouncing
• nonplusing
• crying down
• writing off
• nonplussing
• fazing
• abashing
• damning
• bad-mouthing
• censuring
• execrating
• putting down
• reprobating
• reprehending

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• elevating
• exalting
• praising
• citing
• aggrandizing
• honoring
• complimenting
• deifying
• recognizing
• commending
• celebrating
• acknowledging
• cheering
• congratulating
• applauding
• boasting
• extolling
• saluting
• hailing
• lauding
• canonizing
• decorating
• eulogizing
• touting
• acclaiming
• highlighting
• dignifying
• promoting
• glorifying
• ennobling
• uplifting
• spotlighting
• feting
• lifting
• advancing
• magnifying
• enshrining
• playing up
• raising
• fêting
• upgrading
• enthroning
• boosting
• idealizing
• romanticizing
• enskying

demeaning

3 of 3

verb (2)

present participle of demean

as in behaving

to manage the actions of (oneself) in a particular way

I shall endeavor to demean myself with utmost respect when our pastor comes to visit

Synonyms & Similar Words

• behaving
• carrying
• acquitting
• restraining
• conducting
• handling
• composing
• containing
• comporting
• controlling
• deporting
• quitting
• constraining
• inhibiting
• bearing
• collecting
• curbing
• checking
• repressing
• playing
• quieting
• acting
• moderating
• modulating
• tempering
• impersonating

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• misbehaving
• carrying on
• cutting up
• acting up
• misconducting

Examples of demeaning in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

With no work, Kahanamoku went home to Hawaii, where he was given a series of almost demeaning jobs in Honolulu before finally becoming the city’s police chief. —Les Carpenter, Washington Post, 18 July 2024

Her eyes aren’t without empathy, but there’s something else there too: pity and frustration and frustration’s more demeaning cousin, annoyance. —Edan Lepucki, The Atlantic, 12 July 2024

Videos show the demeaning treatment of captives and the presence of a senior Rapid Support Forces commander recently singled out by U.S. sanctions for his role in atrocities against civilians. —Lauren Leatherby, New York Times, 19 June 2024

How Sculptor Meta Warrick Challenged White Supremacy A 1907 exhibition on the founding of Jamestown featured the work of an artist determined to counter demeaning stereotypes. —JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024